Archive for the 'What Works' Tag Under 'OC Watchdog' Category

Last year, Tulsa was building a new city hall. The mayor asked city workers and four private contractors to bid on the electrical, mechanical, plumbing, and carpentry; Tulsa's city maintenance staff submitted the more competitive bid -- by more than $100,000 -- and won the contract.

But these guys knew the lay of the land. The seven city staffers went on to find another $100,000 in savings as they went -- and they each got close to $4,000 in bonuses as a reward.

This, according to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is the sort of enlightened self-interest that gives public workers an incentive to save public money. And it's the sort of "bold idea that can make government work better, solve a serious problem, or improve city life" that Bloomberg Philanthropies, the wealthy mayor's charitable foundation, is looking for in its Mayors Challenge.

Bloomberg is offering $9 million for more bold ideas, and has asked the mayors of 1,300 cities with populations of at least 30,000 to weigh in. That includes most of the cities in Orange County, which have until Sept. 14 to apply.

So there was this nasty fight in Yorba Linda, where the city council accused the city manager of doling out $600,000 in unapproved bonuses to himself and others (which erupted in lawsuits and name-calling and ended in a pricey settlement).

And it hadn't been long since Bob Citron's bad investments led Orange County into a $1.64 billion bankruptcy, either.

Laguna Niguel city councilmembers sought to heed these cautionary tales, and dig a little deeper into how staffers were handling public money. It was hard not to be defensive at first, City Manager Tim Casey confessed -- but what evolved in the little city of Laguna Niguel helps keep city staffers on their financial toes, and can be instructional for others:

You earn what? Each year since 2001, the city's independent auditors pick up the personnel files of the city manager and top city brass. Auditors then compare payroll records -- what the employees were actually paid -- to city council resolutions on what those employees should have been pai

The former owner of a Stanton reptile store that was shut down in 2009 as unsanitary is getting something extra in his stocking this month:

A lawsuit seeking $106,349, which is what county animal services says it spent on his impounded reptiles and rodents.

The county filed suit this week for the money, the cost of caring for 442 animals for a three-month period ending in February 2010. Most of the treatable animals were adopted out or sent to rescue organizations. The others were euthanized, according to the animal care agency.

According to the lawsuit, Christopher Rayburn, owner of Radical Reptiles, was given at least three warnings to correct unsanitary conditions at his store before it was finally shut down by the county Nov. 9, 2009.

"The majority of the animals appeared in poor health, dehydrated and underweight due to lack of available water," the suit said. "Heat lamps were not turned on. Rats and mice were cannibalizing."

We finally got info back from the Orange County Sheriff's Department describing how they are handling the impoundment of vehicles of unlicensed drivers -- and it turns out they have been making a concerted effort to follow guidance from the federal courts (i.e., to stay within the U.S. Constitution) for nearly five years now.

But, Sgt. Yvonne Shull told us, they are going to have to make additional policy changes to comply with the new law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Regular readers will remember our post earlier this month that described the controversial practice of snaring sober -- but unlicensed -- drivers at DUI checkpoints and then impounding their cars for 30 days, a practice that has generated tens of millions of dollars for California police agencies.

These impounds have mostly impacted illegal immigrants who are not permitted to get a license under California law. Many lose their cars because they can't afford the fines and impound fees, often over $1,000.

With the cost of American weddings easily exceeding $25,000, the Orange County Board of Supervisors has taken steps to ensure that newly-wed couples will have, at least, two thin quarters to rub together.

We at The Watchdog have known Dave Kiff since he was a young'un, slaving away as right-hand man to Supervisor Marian Bergeson as the county struggled its way out of bankruptcy. (More fun than a hot poker in the eye. Barely.)

Monthly, each council member can get $690 in salary, $1,475 in health benefits, $175 in pension payments and $37.50 in life insurance, though not all current council members accept the full amount. Each also collects $60 monthly for Redevelopment Agency meetings.

The council asked city staff to draft a resolution that would eliminate those benefits, which could save nearly $150,000 a year. It is also discussing placing the issue on the November 2012 ballot, which would block future councils from reinstating the benefits.

Update 9/20: Tustin says that "To further encourage and improve energy efficiency in Tustin, the City has applied and obtained from the Department of Energy, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG). This grant allows applicants that submitted their plans after June 1, 2010 to get permit fees reimbursed at the project completion."

Back in January, we told you that a business hankering to save the planet in San Clemente would have to pay nearly $14,000 for a permit to install solar panels -- while businesses in Anaheim, Santa Ana, Mission Viejo and Laguna Beach paid zip, zero, zilch.

Businesses are the most prolific energy consumers -- something the recent blackout may have underscored -- and half of OC's cities were strangling progress by charging exorbitant fees for solar installation permits, a Sierra Club study said.

It then launched a campaign to put the heat on and get the cities to lower fees. And what do you know? It worked. (More or less!)